When I was pregnant I will admit that whenever I read about someone sharing a family bed I turned my nose up and said “how awful! How could you do that with the risk of SIDS!!!” I had read pamphlet after pamphlet about the dangers of co-sleeping. I never considered that I would do it.
As the baby gets older his sleeping pattern is getting worse. His daddy and I think it’s because he’s teething. Anyway, after his dad would go to work I would guiltily sneak the baby into bed with me in order to get some sleep. I threw the comforter and extra pillows off of the bed and put my hand on the baby’s belly as we slept in peace…finally!
I broke down crying one day and admitted to my husband that I had been doing this. He said he wasn’t so sure it was a good idea since he ‘d read about the dangers as well. Me being the researcher that I am set out to learn more about the actual risks.
You see, I’d really come to love and look forward to sharing a bed with the baby because it’s such a sweet and intimate time.
As many of you know, I am a Dr. Sears advocate. He recommends Co-Sleeping! I breathed a sigh of relief that I’m not a bad mother after all. In fact, if you look at the number of babies who die from SIDS in their cribs and the number from co-sleeping, the crib number is higher even when you weight the numbers
Here is a link to what Dr. Sears has to say about it: http://www.askdrsears.com/html/7/T071000.asp#T071006
Of course, I learned that there is a right and a wrong way. After doing my research I made further changes in order to make it safer. Now, the baby starts out in his crib (hates it!) or Amby Baby Hammock (adores it and thinks it’s fun to bounce himself…which is good and bad, lol). When he just won’t go to sleep I bring him into the bed.
This arrangement is working well for us, and I no longer turn my nose up at the thought of it. I do realize that some babie have passed away with this arrangement, and that is in the back of my mind. However, Dr. Sear’s studies and the statistics put my mind to rest. After all, this is the norm in countries where SIDS is unheard of!
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